This paper differed from essays that I’ve written previously in the fact that MLA updated and I had to readjust to that set up and all of my previous teachers wanted me to start my page numbers on the second page. It was more organizationally different than it was content different. I’d written synthesis essays before so I knew what I was doing and how I should be doing it, it was just a matter of how my old teacher wanted my work compared to how Mrs. B wanted it. For me writing the kernel essays were most helpful in so that when it came time to write the bigger synthesis paper I was adjusted and back in the swing of writing and writing bigger papers the way they were meant to be written. Having a partner helped me because I get really nervous when people read things that I’ve written so having a partner and having my partner be Josh who I’m friends with helped me shake some of those nerves for people reading my work. I still wouldn’t be totally comfortable with having a stranger read anything I’ve written but having someone I know helped with just getting a little bit more used to it. At my old school we never did peer review so I never had to worry about anyone besides my teacher reading what I wrote but now that I’m here I have to get over so this first partner reading was a baby step to getting comfortable with others reading what I write. I grew as an academic in this unit because I really utilized my time well so nothing was rushed or crammed. I gave myself the time I needed to make sure that I could give every aspect of the writing process the time it needed in order for it to grow and become better. I could improve for next unit by working on writing about myself. I struggle with writing about me but I could go on for days about anything or anything else. I struggle with putting things about myself into words so when writing about myself in a big essay like this one I felt like it would never become the essay I wanted because of the part about myself in it. If I had one takeaway from the last four weeks it would be that the writing center is one of the best tools available to us. What I struggle with the most in my writing is that I have so many ideas and so much information that I want to put onto the paper but no idea how to get them out and the people at the writing center understood that and helped me the most in getting where I needed to be in my writing.